


Journey to Exegol

by ceridwen_2020



Series: Early ideas for a re-imagining of the Rise of Skywalker [5]
Category: Star Wars Sequel Trilogy
Genre: Gen, Palpatine is essentially a corpse, cloning
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-23
Updated: 2020-11-23
Packaged: 2021-03-09 22:01:47
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,645
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27683252
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ceridwen_2020/pseuds/ceridwen_2020
Summary: After finding a mysterious holocron on the planet of Mustafar, Kylo Ren wires it into his TIE and travels to the unknown planet of Exegol where he encounters the remains of Darth Sidious.A re-imagining of Kylo Ren's first visit to Exegol.
Relationships: Kylo Ren/Rey
Series: Early ideas for a re-imagining of the Rise of Skywalker [5]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2024378
Kudos: 1





	Journey to Exegol

The holocron led Kylo Ren into the furthest reaches of the Unknown Regions, further than he had ever travelled before. Far out beyond Rakarta Prime, past the Deep, his ship sped, taking him into many uncharted wonders. The holocron drew him on until he wondered if he had programmed it correctly especially when it started to steer the ship into a nebula, alive with raging storms of dust and gas, and erratic energy surges, that battered his fighter. With difficulty, Kylo pushed his ship through, relying on all of his piloting skills and the Force, until the ship was spat back out into the darkness.  
Looming in front of the window was a huge dark blue planet, barely distinguishable from the space around it except for the electrical storms that wracked it.   
Exegol… it must be!  
But it was the scene in front of Exegol that shocked him more than the strange planet. Vast orbital shipyards had been constructed to the left side of the planet, he could see the metal frameworks and structures clearly. But he was not prepared for the huge number of Star Destroyers, lined up in neat rows, that had been constructed here. Sat waiting to be put into service, these were much older models than he recognised but there was no denying the strength and scale of this hidden fleet.  
What have the Sith been doing out here?   
When Snoke had first introduced him to the First Order, he had told him that it had been part of the Emperor’s contingency plan, staffed by those who were dedicated to the restoration of the Empire. In time, this had come to be superseded by Snoke’s own plans, which he had always kept vague. A way, Kylo realised now, of keeping servants like he and Hux in check.   
As he stared at the fleet, he realised that Exegol was not the only planet out here. Beyond, he could see several other planets orbiting what appeared to be a dying star, wispy coils of light extending out from its disintegrating core. Having seen enough, Kylo steered his ship down towards the surface of Exegol, heading towards what looked like concentrations of light. Breaking through the atmosphere, he found a barren world beset with constant lightning storms. Steering to avoid them, he guided his TIE towards what looked like a gigantic city clustered around a huge inverted pyramid.  
Kylo landed his ship just away from the buildings, climbed out and checked the atmosphere. It was cold and dry, fortunately breathable, although unpleasant. Unhooking his lightsaber from his belt, he started to walk towards the pyramid, which seemed to be a focal point for the lightning storms. It radiated with dark side power - the air seemed to vibrate to a higher and higher pitch before it was spilt with another lightning storm, only for the tension to start building again. It threatened to split his head in half and he wondered how anyone managed to live on this nightmarish planet - not that there was any indication of any life, the intermittent lightning strikes and baleful light made it seem impossible.  
Quickening his pace, Kylo Ren walked past what he thought to be buildings but there were no windows or doors, just black shiny cubes that were shot through with thin veins of gleaming crystal. It reminded him of the throne that he had seen in his vision - perhaps that was on Exegol too?  
Finally he reached the pyramid and stopped to admire it. The architecture was remarkable, the whole structure floating several feet above the ground. It was fashioned out of the same shiny black stone as the cubes outside it. Underneath, Kylo saw what appeared to be a circular depression in the ground. Looking more closely, it turned out to be a stone platform.  
'Come down to us…'  
Encouraged by the voices, he stepped onto the platform. There was a loud clanking noise and the platform started to descend into the ground, worked by huge chains either side. Unsettled by the noise, Kylo channelled his growing trepidation into an appreciation of his surroundings. All around him were colossal statues of cloaked and hooded warriors, some human, some masked, lining the avenue of what appeared to be a huge temple or citadel. Involuntarily he shivered, sensing the dark side energy permeating the space. It was a place of power unlike he had ever seen.  
The platform came to a halt and Kylo Ren stepped off, unsure where to go. To his left was a long avenue that looked promising. Grasping his lightsaber tightly, he walked cautiously along the avenue, the statues towering over him. In-between the statues he could see figures lurking in the shadows. They did not approach him but he could feel them watching him, which, despite his strength and power, unnerved him. In due course, the avenue ended at a large building, built out of the already familiar black stone veined with white crystal. There was a solitary door beneath a plainly carved archway that led inside.  
Sweat breaking out on his forehead, Kylo Ren walked up the steps and entered into the building. He found himself in a long corridor, bisected with large windows. Looking in, he saw what looked like laboratories, some containing huge tanks with deformed figures floating in them, others filled with machines and mechanical contraptions, their lights flickering on and off in the darkness. A few dark-clad figures scurried about, checking machines, testing unknown solutions, paying no attention to him. The tense atmosphere disorientated him and made him feel light-headed but he continued on, determined to get to the bottom of the mystery.   
At the end of the corridor was a large chamber, filled with shadows, a single window letting in the intermittent light from outside. There was no where else to go and Kylo paused for a moment, wondering what to do next. Then, he heard scratching noises, something was coming towards him from out of the shadows.   
Alarmed he raised his weapon, ‘Who’s there?’  
From the far corner of the room emerged a terrifying vision, what looked like a rotting corpse, barely held together and harnessed to a strange contraption, crept over the ground to stand in front of him. ‘My boy,’ said a voice from the depths of the ruined mouth. ‘At last.’  
‘What are you?’ asked Kylo, trying to keep control of his emotions at the sight, and the smell, of the corpse’s putrid flesh and white, sightless eyes. The fact that the corpse seemed to know who he was disturbed him even more.  
‘I am your destiny,’ said the figure ominously, its voice changing subtly.  
Kylo Ren suddenly felt very small. He recognised the voice.  
’I have been every voice that you have ever heard… inside your head.’  
How is it possible? It was the voice that he had always confided in, the voice that had encouraged him towards the darkness. ’You?’  
‘Yes, my boy.’ The corpse appeared to move its head, as if it was looking at him. ‘Look at you. Such power. Such strength. Such beauty.’ The corpse seemed to smile, ‘Just like your grandfather in his prime. And like your grandfather, you are mine.’  
‘I belong to nobody,’ said Kylo firmly but he was unnerved by the the power that the corpse had over him. ‘You’re dead!’  
‘I was dead,’ said the corpse, unsmiling. ‘For years my spirit was trapped here, unable to pass into the World Between Worlds.’ He peered at Ben with his milky eyes, ‘I was restless, lost. Yet still the shadows called to me. For years, nothing. Then - a presence, so powerful in the light and dark that I could feel it calling to me from across the galaxy. I searched for it and found it, born to one who would try to deny her own dark heritage.’  
Leia! He remembered his parents discussing him when he was young, the ever-present darkness, not knowing how to deal with it. Perhaps they never had a chance…  
‘The Force awakened in you, Ben. And as the heir to Skywalker you had to be turned,’ continued Palpatine, as if responding to his innermost thoughts. ‘The Skywalkers might look to the light but they are mired in the darkness. And you were all too ready to listen to the shadow inside you. You let your hate and your fear consume you. By the time Snoke found you, he merely fanned the flames…’   
‘I killed Snoke,’ said Kylo angrily, brandishing his lightsaber, but Palpatine only laughed.  
Suddenly a ring of warriors, their identity hidden behind shiny red helmets, emerged from the shadows to surround him, warning him against further aggression to their master. They were garbed in striking red armour, reminding Kylo of the Praetorian Guards who protected Snoke. He cursed himself for being so blind - the signs of his Sith allegiance were there all along.  
‘It was all part of the plan, my boy,’ said the remains of Palpatine, grinning evilly. ‘Snoke knew what was necessary and he was prepared to give his life so that the Sith might return.’ His voice grew wistful, ‘For a long time we have waited here. But soon the Convergence will be at hand and the Sith will rise again!’  
A vision came to life in Kylo’s head - the nebula shifting and changing under the influence of some enormous energy surge, opening up a path out of the Unknown Regions and into the Known Galaxy, enabling the hundreds of star destroyers, staffed by Sith and Imperial loyalists, to head away from Exegol to reconquer their Empire. The vision ended and Kylo Ren remained silent, humiliated that once again he had no control over his own destiny. It had been mapped out from the beginning.  
‘You have nothing to say, boy? No matter, you will serve me now, just as your grandfather did before you. I made you into what you are, a worthy servant for the restored Empire.’  
Kylo’s anger flared. ‘I follow no-one!’  
Palpatine cackled. ‘That’s the spirit! Your hate makes you stronger. Listen to me,’ he spoke more softly, as if confiding a great secret. ‘The Sith always knew there was a transportative vergence here. Trapped I may have been but thousands of generations of Sith live inside me now. When you are ready, boy, you will be heir to their power and to their knowledge.’  
Kylo said nothing, he wanted to attack the corpse in front of him, to scatter the rotting limbs around the room and leave with his dignity intact. But the warriors were still watching him closely, and who knew how many more were lurking in the darkness.  
‘Your thoughts betray you, young Skywalker,’ said Palpatine. ‘Your anger, your aggression, your passion and your willingness to destroy everything that you hold dear have shown that you are worthy. Snoke was powerful, yes, but he was not a Sith. He should have known that you had outgrown him. Yet… you struggle to give yourself completely to the darkness. The pull to the light is strong… as is your compassion… Unless you curb it, it will be your undoing.’  
Kylo thought he was well practised at hiding his emotions, but it was impossible to escape the piercing mind probe of the most powerful Sith.  
‘Ah… I see her in your mind. The young scavenger, Rey. You tried to turn her but she refused your hand.’  
‘She means nothing to me.’ Like he had with Snoke, Kylo made a last ditch attempt to try and convince Palpatine that he had no reason to concern himself with the insignificant scavenger but like Snoke, Palpatine knew him too well.  
‘If you are to be heir to the Sith Empire, you must kill her,’ said Palpatine with a wry smile, seeking to inflame the conflict inside the young man’s soul. ‘Destroy the last of the Jedi, like your grandfather did before you, and take his place at my side.’  
Resigned to his fate, Kylo held his head high. ’I will find her,’ he forced himself to say.  
‘Good, good. Bring me the head of the last Jedi and your turn to the darkness will be complete. Then the forces of the First Order will be joined with the Sith, and we will take back what is rightfully ours. Where there is chaos, we shall bring peace.’  
A crowd of hooded acolytes suddenly swarmed into the chamber, pushing past Kylo Ren in their haste to get to their master. He watched on with distaste as they injected a thick, vicious liquid into the corpse’s limbs - clearly it took much effort to keep the Sith alive. Feeling nauseous, he left the chamber and hurried back to his ship.

As he flew back through the nebula, Kylo’s mind drifted into aimless thoughts. His understanding of himself, who he was and what his destiny could be, had been shattered for a second time and he did not know if he could ever piece it back together. The dark side had claimed him long ago and he should have been pleased that his efforts had been rewarded with the promise of even greater power as heir to the Sith and to his grandfather’s legacy. But the prize was hollow and empty, it was not a destiny of his choosing. He had been tricked and now he had to pay for the terrible choices he had made.  
Ever since he could remember, the voice in his head had seemed a friend to him, encouraging him when he felt uncertain, pointing out the ways in which his family seemed to hold him back, or how they feared his power. It had spoken to him of power and great knowledge if only he would give into the darker impulses in his nature, that the path to the dark side would reveal who he truly was - not who his family wanted him to be.  
Yet that was revealed as a lie. Palpatine had used him to revenge himself on his parents, his uncle - the heroes of the Rebellion. The cursed Skywalker heritage… it was not about him at all. He remembered his father’s warning about Snoke, that once he had outlived his usefulness he would be crushed. He had not faced the truth then, but he had to face it now. There was no doubt in his mind that Palpatine would use him in exactly the same way, and dispose of him if he became surplus to requirements. Perhaps he would serve as a vessel for the Sith - Kylo shuddered as he remembered the putrid body that carried Palpatine’s spirit. He only had a rudimentary knowledge of cloning but it seemed that the Sith acolytes had been experimenting with the creation of a body for their master, that’s what the laboratories must be for.  
What has my life been for? There was no meaning, no purpose, that had not been shaped by someone else. Anger fought with sorrow for dominance within his head. Many years before, Snoke had promised him an end to the conflict that had always raged within him. But despite his descent into darkness it had never gone away, it had only become worse. The Skywalker legacy hung heavy over his head, bringing nothing but fear, violence, loneliness. He remembered his childhood dream, to be a pilot like his father. That dream had died when he had murdered his father, another exercise in futility.  
Now his connection with Rey had put her in danger too. Although he had dissembled to Palpatine, he knew he could not kill her. It was their destiny to find balance and belonging, and the existence of the Sith would be an obstacle in their way. Feeling a newfound resolve, he kicked the engine into a higher gear and sped back towards the location of the First Order fleet. There was much to be done.


End file.
